Young says drug testing is 'working'

HOUSTON – Lawyers have nothing on Padres pitcher Chris Young. The Princeton alum asks questions while already knowing the answer, such as this little bit of baseball discovery yesterday:

“Has Manny Ramirez been responsible for us losing, one or two games this year?” Young said. “If you look at it, you'd have to say yes.”

Maybe Young conveniently forgot that Ramirez's groundout keyed Padres closer Heath Bell's big escape on April 9, but let the record show that on April 8, Ramirez drove in three runs and the Dodgers beat the Padres 5-2; three weeks later, Ramirez dealt a double and a home run into the 8-5 defeat suffered by the Padres.

So when Young heard Thursday that Ramirez was suspended 50 games for violating baseball's performance-enhancing drug policy, he flashed back to Ramirez's RBIs against the Padres.

“It's funny how that works,” Young said, only he wasn't smiling.

One other memory tumbled forth, Young said, amid all the “Manny suspended” bulletins. This one was of Young standing inside a bathroom at Dodger Stadium last Friday, cup in hand as a drug-testing official awaited his urine sample.

“I remember thinking it was extremely invasive, but it's a sacrifice we have to make to clean up the game,” Young said. “I had that exact thought while I was (supplying a sample) in front of that guy at Dodger Stadium. What's happening with Manny, it's a shame, but the program's working.”

Texas roots

It's as predictable as the weather in San Diego, these Texas-born pitchers and their infatuation with Nolan Ryan.

“I remember going to watch him pitch for the Rangers,” Josh Geer said, sounding not unlike Young and Red Sox ace Josh Beckett. “You could hear him grunt. He was one of my favorites.”

Geer grew up near Dallas, living in places such as Forney and Mesquite. A stress fracture in his pitching elbow denied him a scholarship to the big schools, so after the surgeon inserted a screw and the bone healed, he chose Navarro Junior College an hour south of Texas.

Two years later, he noticed that three pitchers from Rice University in Houston – Phillip Humber, Jeff Niemann and Wade Townsend – were selected third, fourth and eighth in the 2004 draft. So he accepted an offer from Rice, and tomorrow will pitch in the Astros' ballpark for the first time since he led the Owls past Texas A&M there. “It's going to be exciting,” said Geer, who had a strong season with Rice and became a third-round selection of the Padres in 2005.

Humber, Niemann and Townsend have been derailed by injuries, and Geer has heard talk that Rice pitchers were overworked. “I don't have an opinion on that either way,” he said.

He added: “I loved everything about Rice. You really had to keep up your grades. It's a private school. I remember taking sports management and economics.” He jokingly added, “You had to read books.”

Notable

src="http://www.signonsandiego.com/images/utbullets/utbullet.gif" width="5" height="7" border="0" /> For the first time since having shoulder surgery in October, two Padres threw batting practice yesterday: reliever Mike Adams, who faced minor leaguers in Peoria, Ariz., and manager Bud Black, recovered from rotator-cuff surgery.